Playing in the sun is fun provided you protect your skin with the sunscreen. But, sometimes, you end up playing too hard and forget to reapply the sunscreen you were supposed to hours ago. The result – the worst sunburn you can ever experience.
A mild sunburn only gives you a temporary discomfort while a severe can cause serious symptoms like swelling, blistering, fever, and dehydration.
If this sounds familiar to you, you need to do something to heal your skin from it. So, here are some easy and fast fixes that will help you ease your discomfort caused by your sunburned skin.
1. Apply Soothing Compresses
After a sunburn, your skin is inflamed and it may feel very sensitive. To ease the discomfort, go for ice water soaks. This can make your burn heal faster. Add a few ice cubes to tap water in a bowl; take a cloth and dip it in the water and lay it over your burn. You can repeat this several times during the day for 10 to 15 minutes.
You can also soak yourself in a cold water bathtub and let the cold temperature ease your sunburned skin. Be careful with soap, though, it may cause more irritation or may even dry your skin. After you are done with your bath, don’t forget to moisturize with a cooling cream!
2. Get Some Relief With Hydrocortisone
Hydrocortisone is available in the drugstore as creams, ointments, lotions, or even sprays. These are used to treat redness, swelling, itching, and discomfort of various skin conditions. You can ease your sunburned skin with the topical application of a one percent hydrocortisone cream or ointment. You can use it one to four times a day or even lesser if your skin feels better in two applications.
3. Soothe It With Aloe Vera
Aloe vera is a perfect remedy for treating sunburned skin. It has moisturizing properties and can cool and soothe the skin at the same time. Studies have shown that using aloe vera on the skin can heal the burns much faster than other creams.1
You can purchase aloe vera gels or creams from the stores. If you have your own aloe vera plant, you can scrape the gel from its leaves with a spoon and apply it directly onto your skin. If your skin feels better with the ice cube application, you can add them to your ice cube tray and make your own aloe ice cubes for a faster relief.
4. Drink Water And Other Fluids
As much as it is important to keep your skin cool on the outside, it is that much more important to keep your body cool even on the inside. So, drink lots of water to bring cool your body. You can also drink other fluids like fresh juices like orange juice, pomegranate juice, or any other fruit juice of your choice.
5. Turn Down The Temperature
Whenever you have a sunburn, it is always better to turn the regulator of your fan or air conditioner up a bit. Turning down the temperature will allow your body to cool down faster than it would in a warmer place. So, one of the easiest things to do to feel better quickly is to be in a cool place.
6. Cool Your Eyes With Teabags
Sunburns can be quite a task to deal with especially it is the sensitive areas that get affected like the skin around your eyes. Because the skin near your eyes is very delicate, it is important to be more careful when you take care of a sunburn in the area. You can always place tea bags soaked in cold water onto your eyes and lie down for a while with your eyes closed.
So, heal your sunburns easily with these quick and natural ways. In fact, there is one tip that can solve any sunburn issue you have experienced – don’t make the same mistake twice – don’t go out in the sun without applying a sunscreen lotion or cream. Keep reapplying to protect yourself from the sun; if you feel a discomfort, don’t ignore it.
If these ways were not enough, here are some more ways you can heal your skin from a sunburn from things you use in the kitchen!
Some Kitchen Staples To Soothe Your Sunburned Skin
Here are some quick, easy ways to soothe your sunburned skin using some of your common kitchen staples.
- Cornstarch: Make a paste with cornstarch and water and apply the paste directly to your sunburned skin for instant cooling.
- Fat-Free Milk: Mix one cup of fat-free milk with four cups of water and add ice cubes to it. Apply compresses for 15 to 20 minutes and repeat every two to four hours.
- Lettuce: Boil lettuce leaves in water. Strain and let the liquid cool in a refrigerator. Use this water on the sunburned skin by dipping cotton balls in the liquid and placing it on the sunburn.
- Oatmeal: You can apply oatmeal water to your sunburned skin. Wrap the oatmeal in a cheesecloth and pour cold water on the cloth. Discard the oatmeal and use the water for a cold compress on the skin.
- Yogurt: You can apply yogurt to any part of your sunburned skin. Rinse off in a cold shower and pat dry.
- White Vinegar: If the sunburn is mild, you can use white vinegar on the affected areas. The acetic acid in vinegar acts as a topical nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drug.
So, if you ever end up with a sunburn instead of a sun-kissed skin, use these easy, natural fixes to treat your sunburned skin and remember, don’t go out in the sun for too long with applying a sunscreen lotion or cream.
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